La Familia Morvoglio
Ruthless, cunning and exceedingly subtle, House Morvoglio, known to their own members as La Familia, is an infamous, galactic crime family. Spreading their tendrils across several dozen hive worlds and operating out of nomadic fleets, La Familia Morvoglio is a constant thorn in the side of the local Arbites, and when discovered, the Inquisition. Unbeknownst to nearly any others, La Familia holds a dark, terrifying secret. Despite its reputation as a ruthless, though ultimately normal crime syndicate, House Morvoglio's origins lie in something more foul and tainted. House Morvoglio is a Genestealer cult, one that has operated for far longer than almost any others. Joining the upper rankings of the House requires becoming part of the 'Inner Family', a process no one talks about and even fewer walk away from. Deep beneath their crumbling, ancestral homes, and within their ancient, cavernous fleets, xenos crawl and chitter in the darkness, cruelly intelligent and waiting to spread their taint to others. History Beginning its life on the Hive World Sombra, when an unusually intelligent Genestealer Patriarch escaped into the Hive and began to cause an infestation. Quickly understanding the culture of the criminals in the world, the Patriarch assimilated gangs of criminals that would form the initial families that created House Morvoglio. As the cult grew, its influence grew offworld as more members brought more influence and resources. The Hive fleet devoured Sombra as planned, but the Patriarch survived the event by being in the Morvoglio fleet at the time. This event sparked the alien's interest, and it realized that its infestation could spread much more vastly if it avoided its own destruction and spread its seed to many planets. Hence the galaxy-wide crime syndicate was born. Structure Half well-oiled crime syndicate, half psychotic family. and with just a dash of depraved cult, La Familia is one of the most twisted organizations a person can join. Rank and file troops are obviously oblivious to the cult's inner workings, but attaining any rank at all requires submitting to the kiss of the Genestealer. 'Kin' are those whose genetics have been warped and suitably remade by the Great Devourer. The more obviously mutated and Tyrannic members, as well as true Genestealers are kept as the cult's shock troops, while the more human looking members go forth to deal with mortals, and attract new recruits and mates for the Family. La Familia does absolutely everything it can to keep its secrets secret. Knowing that one slip-up leads to Inquisitorial purging, the cult is very careful and very quiet. Unlike most Genestealers, La Familia are concerned with their own safety, determined to spread the crime syndicate through the galaxy as much as possible, to subvert and weaken other races in preparation for the coming swarm. The House is divided into unofficial Tiers, and through the Hive Mind of the cult, it is biologically impossible for any cultist with Genestealer DNA (Tier 2 and upward) to disobey a direct order from a higher 'ranking' cultist. * Tier 1 - Familiars - Friends of the family, most people at this level are either unaware that they are working for House Morvoglio, or are blissfully ignorant of the more tainted side of the family's dealings. The Morvoglios use people of this level as expendable minions, who ensure the cult's secrecy by never being let in on the secret, spreading their influence unknowingly. * Tier 2 - Blooded '- Members of this level have endured the Genestealer's Kiss, and have had their genetics suitably altered. While in most cases, there are no outward changes or mutations, the Hive Mind of the cult makes infiltration impossible, as all members of the family know with a glance the 'rank' of a member. At this level, cultists are expected to spread their seed to as many as possible, willingly or unwillingly. * '''Tier 3 '- 'Kin '- Kin is a designation reserved for Genestealer Hybrids of the first through fourth generation. Regardless of visible mutations, Kin are treated with a nearly divine awe by lesser members, as they are closer to the Great Devourer than most others. Kin are usually managed by a Magus or Primus, a specialized psyker/warrior of the brood. * '''Tier 4 - Broodmothers/Fathers - This echelon of the cult is never seen in public, because it comprises intelligent, Purestrain Genestealers the family has produced. Broodmothers receive support from the family, but in practice, usually move planetside when the Morvoglio fleet does business, to set up a further infestation. Genestealers of the Morvoglio line have several superficial traits, like a darker, matte-black carapace and a sleeker, more streamlined build, perfect for blending into spaceship and Hive World structures. * Tier 5 - Royal Family - Only Santiago Morvoglio, Trinita, and their direct spawn occupy this tier. Beliefs Like almost all Genestealer Cults, House Morvoglio is fanatically worshipful of the Great Devourer, the Tyranid Hive Mind that guides them. Tyranids are viewed as angelic beings, whose blood flows through the veins of supplicants. House Morvoglio has no problem even with being devoured, for it is the doctrine of the cult that those who are assimilated into the great swarm will live on forever within the Tyrannic Hive Mind. House Morvoglio practices many debased rites, with incest, xenophilia and immense and nightmarish orgies of alien flesh being fairly commonplace in the upper ranks of the cult. While vile to human sensibilities, each of these rites serves a practical function of spreading Tyrannic DNA to as many host lifeforms as possible. House Morvoglio is always open to marriages outside the family, as that just means more victims, and has subsumed several noble houses in Tyrannic taint. While House Morvoglio clearly believes that they are the heralds of the great swarm, the Tyranid Hive Mind views them as a valuable, though ultimately expendable tool. While most Genestealers and their progeny do not survive the coming of the great swarm when it descends, House Morvoglio is somewhat privileged in that the greater Tyranid organisms often allow them to escape. Whether this is genuine affection, or simply pragmatism is unknown. One small deviation from the Tyranid norm has been noted in the Royal Family of House Morvoglio, a shapeshifting ability used by both Trinita and Santiago that hints at ancestry related to Ymgarl Genestealers. If this is true, it explains why the Hive Mind has avoided devouring the family. Santiago is aware of this potential deviance and is deathly afraid of being found wanting by the greater swarm. As such, any members of the family demonstrating Ymgarl traits, such as vampirism, are killed immediately. Fronts/Business Ventures House Morvoglio, while hardly to the level of such esteemed Rogue Traders as Douchard Bagge or Aston Hoelle, is primarily a business empire and has several legitimate business fronts. Naturally, the cunning Genestealers have ways of making even legitimate business a sordid and shady affair, but for the most part, the Familia is happy to allow these to operate as simple income-engines for the cult. * Khymera Biotechnology - A shady biotech company, known on many poorer planets as a cheap source of implants and grafts, away from the prying eyes of the Adeptus Arbites or the Mechanicus. Unknown to the masses, all genetic treatments that come from the Khymera brand utilize Tyrannic DNA and can potentially infect anyone who uses it. * Apex Weapons Systems - A weapons development company, that also specializes in combat narcotic and bio-modifications. Leading developers in borderline heretical technology to transform humans into Astartes equivalents. Most weapons are benign, but bio-mods almost always include Tyrannic DNA. * Great Devourer '''- A fast food restaurant chain. Initially an early attempt to infest the populace with Tyranid DNA-laced food. Unfortunately this failed, as the biology of Hive dwellers proved too poisoned to be capable of being radically effected by fast food. Great Devourer burgers also, despite copious xeno-venoms, rated as some of the healthiest food served in a Hive City. Great Devourer eventually simply became a benign burger food-outlet, themed after Tyranids, with Tyranid plushies and other novelties for children. Despite complaints from both Maccrage and the Imperial Guard, the Ecclesiarchy backs the chain, to help minimize the Tyranid threat in the public eye. Notable Members Patriarch Santiago Morvoglio Extremely powerful, unique and beyond the understanding of human or Tyranid, Santiago is a unique Genestealer Patriarch with an exceptionally long lifespan. Uniquely, while most Genestealers die when their Hive-Fleet arrives and devours them, Santiago has avoided such a fate by spreading his cult on board a fleet of ships, allowing individual members to establish power bases and leave before the Swarm comes. Unlike most Genestealers, Patriarch Santiago has evolved to look strangely androgynous and almost angelic, while still retaining many nightmarish Tyrannic qualities, such as an exposed carapace and an immense talon crackling with bio-plasma. He shares a hive-mind with his brood, manifesting to those capable of perceiving such things as a strange hybrid of an angelic choir and a hungry, insectoid buzzing. Despite his deviance, Santiago has all the drives of a Tyranid and serves the Swarm in his own way, his cult providing numerous agents to infiltrate and weaken host species. His mindset is utterly alien and while he can feign humanity, Santiago is a cold, inhuman monster intent on devouring all life in this galaxy and beyond. While he identifies as male for the sake of his worshippers, Santiago is biologically androgynous and is capable of bearing children as well as siring them. Gender binary means little to the strange xeno hybrid, who will infest any being of any sex or race. Trinita Morvoglio The face of the Cult as it were. Trinita, just as alien as her father Santiago, is a succubus, designed on a genetic level to draw humans into the fold. Her strange, Tyrannic biology is capable of mimicking any human form, and she projects an aura of pherormones to further muddle the minds of humans. A vicious predator, Trinita is adept at selecting prey, both for food and mating. Designed to propagate the Genestealer brood, Trinita is an intensely sexual being, driven to find mates to add their genetic material to the swarm. Sexual encounters typically end with Trinita devouring her mate for nourishment before she lays another brood of eggs. Despite human societal standards, Trinita cares nothing for societal views on sexual promiscuity, and neither does the cult, who worship their Mother of a Thousand Young. Trinita is fiercely intelligent, and is exceedingly adept and mimicking human emotions she doesn't feel. Biologically immortal as her father, Trinita travels the galaxy, making deals on behalf of the cult, and plucking off lone members of the human herd in her spare time. The Children Believed to be the direct spawn of Trinita and Santiago, the Children, as they are known, are purestrain Genestealers, an expanding hive of alien monsters, nestled deep within the cargo holds of Morvoglio vessels. Loyal to the family and oddly protective of their humanoid relatives, the Morvoglio always keep a hidden pack of the Children in their ships in case they require backup. Despite being utterly inhuman and incapable of communicating with anyone outside their cult, the Children are extremely intelligent, capable of making complex plans, understanding technology and learning from their mistakes. Their hides are nearly invulnerable to small-arms fire, and their rending talons can tear through power armor with ease. Being the hive's dedicated warrior caste, the Children always try to allow the human cultists to make a clean break, knowing that they are utterly expendable. The Children usually fight to the death, which if assured, they will try to take as many enemies as they can with them. Unique Biomorphs Through Khymera, as well as dozens of other biotechnology processing facilities, House Morvoglio has conducted many experiments to create unique Tyranid monstrosities as bio-weapons. Quotes '''FEEL FREE TO ADD YOUR OWN! By About Trivia * In addition to several human Hive Worlds, La Familia Morvoglio is responsible for the extinctions of several xeno races, who were wholly infested and consumed by Genestealers. * Their theme song as a whole is Welcome to the Family Category:Genestealer Cults Category:Pirate Raiders Category:Tyranids